Guide to Writing a Fanfiction: FFVII Version
by Redhead Turk
Summary: Ever had random people scream MARY SUE! to your first chapter when you have 30 more chapters already posted? Tired of people pointing out that your character is too perfect? After going through over 10000 fanfictions and searching for the distinctions bet


Guide to writing a Fiction

After observing my reviews and realizing that half the people who flame others either don't read the entire fiction or don't write anything themselves, I've decided to write a guide to writing fanfiction for FFVII. Not that I can say anything, but it's better than a 400 page grammar book pasted in when you excitedly check your reviews. I hope this helps.

GENERAL RULES

Never ever make your character super-human.

It's a fine distinction between what's FFVII-ish normal and what's not. For example, Sephiroth's jumps defy the laws of physics to such a point that Isaac Newton is probably doing cartwheels in his grave. BUT! There are some things that are no-nos. If Reno or Barret can do them (AKA 10 meter high jumps), it's probably okay for your character. If Cloud or Sephiroth can do them, then most likely it's a no-no.

Add small flaws. Not huge ones like your character is a psychopath murderer, but small flaws.

A lot of fanfic flamers say "Your character's too likable". What they don't realize is that if the character had pockmarks all over the face, was grouchy, kicked everyone around, and spat every insult upon earth at every chance, no character – whether it be FFVII or you – would like them either. And then nobody would read it, because we'd be in a bad mood (unless it's a redemption story)… so! Add small flaws. Something that mars your character's beauty or charm – like sweating a lot, or eating a lot – but nothing too drastic.

On a side note – the flamers don't realize that Tifa and Aeris are actually Sues. And Sephiroth is, of course, a Gary Stu villain, if you want to look at it like that. Just because Square-Enix made them doesn't mean that they're realistic characters.

If you're going to change the characters, change them gradually, please!

This mistake I see around a lot. The thing is, it's OKAY to change the characters – after all, everyone changes, such as Cloud and Tifa. BUT! They can't just magically transform overnight. For example, Reno can't change magically overnight after meeting your character into a caring, thoughtful being. None of your friends do that, so why should he? Make the change gradual. Have the girl (or the guy) mold the character into the shape over time.

Appearances. Natural color plus blue and silver okay.

Unfortunately, Japanese (and that includes myself) have obsession with bizarre hair colors. That includes neon pink, electric blue, and fire-engine red. However, if you want to play it safe, keep it orthodox. Either that or make EVERYTHING radical. Here is a non-mary-sue appearance:

"Blue eyes, blond hair, pale skin" or "Brown hair, green eyes, creamy skin" or "raven hair, dark eyes, olive skin"… anything you see around on the street are okay. The only times you can have dark hair and blue eyes on a Wutai person is if the person received a mako treatment. Wutai people are Asians, and they DO NOT have green or blue eyes. Occasionally they can have pale skin.

Going radical? Fine. Make everything radical. "Pink eyes, green skin, blue hair". Make everything out of ordinary. You will never see a set of pink irises, or green skin, or naturally vivid blue hair.

DO NOT: mix radical and natural. That's called Mary-sue. For example, don't do "jet-black hair" (those don't naturally exist… dark dark raven, yes, jet-black as in Goth black, no), pale ivory skin, and red eyes. Ivory skinned people do exist. Red-eyes don't.

Balance talents out.

Maybe Sephiroth has an IQ that shoots through the roof, can run around the block 300000 times in a minute, manage to keep his hair untangled, be tall and muscular, and be an Adonis. Trust me, that only applies to Sephiroth. Most other characters have flaws. Most often brains don't equal brawns, brawns don't equal beauty, e.t.c. So if your girl weighs 120 pounds, don't have her do flips and take Yazoo out with a punch. Not going to happen. On the other hand, if your character is Prof. Hojo gone good, don't make your character have flawless skin, large, luminous eyes, and shining blond hair. There are people in the world like that, but they're very rare.

Observe grammatical conventions and spelling.

I'm not telling you to be your English teacher, oh no! I'm not professora grammar, either. But always use spell-check, and make sure to read it through before putting it online. If you read it out loud and it doesn't sound right, most likely it's wrong. But most people will let you go for small mistakes.

Most readers dislike weird typographies like tHiS. Pretend that you're sending this to a publisher.

And last but not the least: enjoy your story! If you enjoy it, so will others.

Good luck!


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